GTA: Liberty City Stories: Hands-On

Mmm-multiplayer. Mmm, say it with us; multiplayer. Just like marmite, monkeys and Mesopotamia, you can't say it without the 'mmm' at the start. Well maybe not exactly like those examples, but you get the idea, and with the imminent PSP incarnation of GTA, Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories, you get that feature too. Ker-ching!

From what has been seen of the handheld GTA, it has until this point been described, perhaps unfairly, as just more of the same. Yet though that may still prove to be the case, every other GTA game has brought something different into the mix. GTAIII obviously introduced a new dimension, Vice City a bold cultural flavour, and San Andreas brought sheer scale, RPG elements and warm-beverage controversy to the series. So now it looks as if the hook for us all to return to Liberty City will be the ability to partake in some wonton destruction with our friends in tow (that is, if a whole new GTA game isn't reason enough, 'more-of-the-same' or not).

To begin multiplayer is as simple as hitting start.

The technicalities first: to begin a multiplayer game is as simple as hitting the start button, choosing from one of the seven game types, and then hosting. Up to five other people can then join in over an ad-hoc network (e.g. not over the interweb). Considering the scale of a GTA game it's probable that each player will need their own copy of the game, but there may still be news of some kind of game download function for simpler multiplayer modes.

Only three of the game types have been revealed so far. We had a good look at the 'Liberty City Survivor' mode, a deathmatch by any other name. The playing field will be limited to one of the three islands of Liberty City, if you can call that limited, with all players starting off at random spawn point, from which there is a mad scramble for body armour and favourite weapons (you can sprint indefinitely if you like). Pickups are marked on the map, as are the locations of the other players. There are also time-limited power-ups, marked as red stars, to grant you with Mega-Damage (four times normal), Invisibility (on other players' maps), Frenzy (unlimited rocket launcher) or Invulnerability.

"I love chasing people with the chainsaw"

It's always a good idea for previews like this to include some quotes, to imbue the article with a sense of individualism. However we were so engrossed in playing against the Rockstar guys, we'll just repeat the standout words we heard, so you can draw your own conclusions: "I love chasing people with the chainsaw; you bitch; arse; that was MY body armour you git." Needless to say, in just a couple of games it was easy to pick up, but when we've invested the time to learn the best pickups and discover our favourite killing techniques, it's possible we'll not get any work done ever again.

The other two known modes are 'Get Stretched', a capture-the-flag variation requiring your team to steal a limo from the other team's base (whilst keeping your own limo safe), and 'Protection Racket', another team game where you alternate between attack and defence, to either destroy or protect four limos, by any means necessary. As for the remaining multiplayer modes, we can only speculate, but it would be a fair assumption to expect some sort of racing mode, and we're holding out hope for some co-operative missions too.

There are nine selectable characters for multiplayer.

From the start, there will be nine selectable characters for the multiplayer mode, with up to sixty becoming available by playing through the single-player, along with different outfits and perhaps other unlockable content too. The loading times to start up a game were favourable, and Rockstar have also claimed players should be able to get a good 4 hours play out of a single battery charge. All-in-all, as selling points go, Liberty City Stories looks set to be snapped up on this feature alone, and could easily become the PSP multiplayer game of choice.

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